A cable guide is known having a pair of wheels rotatable about respective intersecting axes inclined to the horizontal so that the wheels meet at an upper location above the intersection of the axes and can support the cable at this location. The use of a pair of wheels in this manner gives considerably more strength than is obtained with a single wheel since lateral forces also can be resisted. It is known to provide such an arrangement with wheels carried on a support allowing independent pivoting of one wheel relative to the other so that the wheels can pivot apart and allow a support arm or the like carried on the cable to pass between them. In such an arrangement it is necessary to provide a plurality of such guides in a row, as that guide which has opened up to allow passage of the depending support arm cannot fulfill any supporting function. Such a system also has the disadvantage that it is relatively complicated and quite expensive.
In another known arrangement one of the wheels is formed with an array of radially extending teeth. In this manner the support arm can be received between two of the teeth of this toothed wheel and pass between the wheels without separating them. Such a system has, however, the considerable disadvantage that relatively slow transport speeds must be employed in order to minimize shocks to the system caused by the fitting of the hanger arm into a groove for passage between the wheels. Even when slow transport speeds are employed, however, wear is considerable and the toothed roller must be replaced frequently and the arrangement is very noisy in operation.
Another arrangement is known having two rollers or wheels pivoted in a frame and rotatable but otherwise nondisplaceable relative to each other. These wheels define a gap through which the support arm of the cable car or the like may pass. The disadvantage of such an arrangement is that it does not provide a firm seat for the cable, as the gap between the two wheels can wear and widen to eventually allow the cable to drop through.